How to celebrate anniversary on board?

[ZerasPride]

Hi all! I was reading on the official DCL site that you can renew your vows for about $1,000. That sounds kind of pricey. Anybody done that before? Would you do it again? Can anyone suggest some other special ways to celebrate? I was thinking a special meal at Palo, a couples massage, special gift in the cabin or I don't know what else. It doesn't have to be costly to be special, does it? I'm not against dropping a few extra dollars, I just want to make the trip memorable.

Actually, I really want to do something special for my hubby. He is so sweet and has made the last 10 years so incredible that I would really like to do something special for him on our 4 night Wonder cruise. Any ideas would be appreciated. Thanks!!

 

[minniecarousel]

Lisa - let DCL know that you're celebrating your anniversary. They may have a present in your stateroom. When we booked our 25th Wedding Anniversary cruise, I let the booking agent know, and we were seated in the dining room with honeymooners! (Made us feel a little OLD!) And when we ate at Palo's, we let our server know that we were on the Cruise to celebrate our anni & she gave us a special treat. (no singing in Palo's - they do that in the other restaurants!)
Also, i hear the Mud Bath is a lot of fun - but my DH would NOT like it, so we skipped it! A couples massage on Castaway Cay might be nice!

 

[imgoingtodisney]

send the kids to the lab (wink wink)

 

[rmbreset]

I told the booking agent we were celebrating our 15th on 5/13 and she got us a dinner reservation in Palo for that night. We were worried about getting a res. for that night when we boarded and she took care of it. Great service , we even got a call from the dinner coordinator to confirm it.

 

[ZerasPride]

Thanks guys for the suggestions. As of right now, DS (16) is NOT going with us on this cruise. I am having a hard time finding a family member who will take the responsibility of getting him back and forth to school everyday (plus he's a teenager and I think that scares some of my family). Anyway, I don't know romantic this trip will end up being if he accompanies us, we'll see.

I'm still trying to find out if anyone has done the Vow Renewal (the search function is down), and if anyone has any other suggestions on making this trip special, I'll be happy to have 'em!

 

[mmouse37]

Take your 16 year old....I am sure there will be plenty of opportunities for romance even with him along. If he is anything like my teens you will not see him for the majority of the trip. We usually do not see our teens until about 2:00 am every night/morning. The adult pool can be very romantic, the hot tubs, spa, Palo, sitting out on Deck 4 in those comfy chairs....most of the things I just mentioned your son would not be allowed to do as they are reserved for those 18 and older.

We all have dinner together and then they are off with their new found friends.

Our DS18 was not coming with us on upcoming 5/17 cruise and we also were worried about him having the house to himself....all I could think of was that Expedia commercial where the parents had visions of a mega house party while they were away....fortunately he decided on his own he would rather be us us and cruise than stay home.


MJ

 

[ZerasPride]

MJ - I find your post extremely timely. DS and I were a "family" long before my hubby came into our lives. Being in a stepfamily can be quite, uh, interesting to say the least. DS goes pretty nearly everywhere with my husband and I. We never wanted him to feel like he was a third wheel but that we truly are a family. The three of us usually spend every anniversary together. Last year it was 10 days split between Hilton Head and OKW (we're DVC members).

I wanted this anniversary to be just me and hubby by ourselves. Maybe that sounds selfish. I don't know. I've thought about that Expedia commercial too. I don't want to leave my son in the hands of a potentially irresponsible family member just so I can go skipping off on an adventure with my husband. DH always says we'll have plenty of time to be alone when DS goes off to college and always encourages DS to come along on our trips and I'm thankful for that. It's me. I am still undecided about taking him. I know we'll all have a great time. We always do on our family trips. I've got plenty of time to find the right person to look out for DS or book him on our trip. But again, thanks for your post!

 

[Buckaroo's Dad]

Hi Lisa!

I am having a hard time finding a family member who will take the responsibility of getting him back and forth to school everyday

I've thought about that Expedia commercial too. I don't want to leave my son in the hands of a potentially irresponsible family member

DS and I were a "family" long before my hubby came into our lives.

Based primarily upon these three statements, I would strongly recommend bringing DS16 with you. Family - and friends so close that they ARE family - are the most important people in our lives. Renew your vows on the ship and have your son "give away" the bride. This is a FAMILY occasion, in my opinion...

 

[house_of_princesses]

But we ask the question again.... How much does it cost to renew your vows on board? Anyone, someone? Would one of the retailers know? Giftsofalifetime or who is that other group who will do special occasions at the parks? They may know. (It would help if I knew the name of the organization. )

 

[eye R.N.]

First, by all means take DS with you. In two cruises I have have had to insist that my teens come to dinner with us. Otherwise we would never have seen them. If you decide not to, we found that having a responsible older (college age) person worked well when we went away for a weekend. (We have three kids 17,14 and 11) Their swim team coach agreed to help out. It was easy money for him, free food ,and just enough supervision to keep everthing in order, without feeling like they had a "babysitter."

Second, vow renewal (according to my daughter who is already planning her parents silver anniversary cruise) are done on the ship and are about an additional $1000. The exact price is on the DCL web site or on the Disney fairy tale wedding site.

We will be celebrating 23 yrs on this cruise. I told our agent when booking so we will see what happens. We are planning a Palo dinner, a couples Surial bath (we've done this before and DH insist we do it again) and I am planning a gift basket from the perfect gift with a bottle of Bailey's and two glasses (the basket needs to be PG rated since we do have an 11 yr. old who would ask about anything too risque.)

Whatever you decide, have fun and let the folks on the ship know what you are celebrating.

 

[ZerasPride]

I really appreciate all your comments. My dear dear mature sister and her husband have volunteered to keep our son for us for the cruise. I already have pangs of guilt not taking him along but I think it will work out for the best. DS knows he is not going and we're planning a little mother/son weekend together after school lets out in June. But, now you guys are causing me to rethink taking him. Now I am so confused! I'll talk it over with hubby tonight and see what he thinks. Again, thanks for the replies and suggestions!

 

[SlyHubby]

Originally posted by house_of_princesses
But we ask the question again.... How much does it cost to renew your vows on board? Anyone, someone? Would one of the retailers know? Giftsofalifetime or who is that other group who will do special occasions at the parks? They may know. (It would help if I knew the name of the organization. )

http://disneycruise.disney.go.com/d.../specialofferindex?id=VowsRenewalSpecialOffer

"Add $1,099 per couple to most 4- or 7-night Disney Cruise Line vacation packages"

"Valid for travel through 12/29/02"

 

[mmouse37]

ZERA....don't feel guilty about it....hubby and I did cruise alone back in '99 on the Wonder for our 20th anniversary....we had a great time and the kids understood our need to get away. Glad you found someone to watch your son.

So I can comment from both sides of the fence!!!

MJ

 

[house_of_princesses]

Thank you, SlyHubby! (I'd like to know where THAT username came from!) We will be celebrating our 14 th. It's our 1st cruise and the 4 DD's will be there. I'd hold off, except we're staying in the RDS. May make it that more special. An extra $1,100... hmmm...

 

[darbear]

you said you told your Booking agent it was your 15 anniversy you were able to get an advance reservation at Palo? Was the booking agent through disney or a TA? What number did you call. Our 18 th anniversy is the first night of our cruise and I would love to be able to get an advance reservation.

Any one else got suggestions on how to get an advance reservation at Palo???

 

[froggymomma]

We're going for our 20th Anniversary with a 4YO, so we weren't planning om Palo. But I like the idea of a gift basket with Bailey's and glasses. What else did you add to it? And do you mind sharing the cost?

Right now I'm envisioning sitting on the verandah sipping a Bailey's on ice.

 

[ZerasPride]

I was beginning to feel like I was a bad mom for wanting to spend some special time alone with my hubby. Like I said before, we normally always do things as a family and I love it but for once, I want to spend some uninterrupted time with DH to celebrate this special occasion. I have so many friends that did not make to their 10th wedding anniversaries and wanted to celebrate just the two of us this time. We'll be back at Hilton Head with DS and probably several other family members next year, like always. Again, thanks for making me feel a little less guilty!

 

[minniecarousel]

Lisa - it's good for the marriage to go away just the two of you! We've done the 3-day Cruise (with 4 days at WDW) w/o our kids twice! We're taking them this summer to mark milestones in our lives: older DS graduates from college, younger DS turns 21, DH & I turn 50 this year and our 28th Wedding anniversary is in the Fall. It's probably also the last vacation that just the 4 of us take together. Go - have fun - he'll be fine!!

 

[SlyHubby]

Originally posted by house_of_princesses
Thank you, SlyHubby! (I'd like to know where THAT username came from!) We will be celebrating our 14 th. It's our 1st cruise and the 4 DD's will be there. I'd hold off, except we're staying in the RDS. May make it that more special. An extra $1,100... hmmm...

well, the way the username happened was that the day the name was created (July 2001) was the day I made the reservation for the cruise for our 10th anniversary (May 30 next month). I had to come up with a new username so my wife wouldn't find out if she looked around here. Obviously at some point the cat was let out of the bag as the date draws near, but I've still got a few surprises up my sleeves.

as far as the extra $1100 - first, just in case you missed it, it says it was only good through December 2002 - but they probably still have something similar. I too thought that was quite expensive for what they were providing. I figured for that much money, I could do lots of little things and get a really nice anniversary gift (in addition to the cruise).

 

[house_of_princesses]

How clever, er, I mean sly, of you to change your username for the occasion! I did notice the caveat "through 12/02". But it can't be that much more, could it? It is very expensive for what they provide, but then all I want from my DH is for him to remember its our anniversary! I don't want anything in the way of gifts, so this memory for us would be a wonderful gift in itself! Still thinking..... (maybe they'll LOWER the price for this package after 12/02! NOT!!! )